Vehicular strut assemblies have been extensively engineered to optimize vehicle handling (e.g., to continually maintain frictional contact between the vehicle's wheels and the road), while also isolating the vehicle body from vibratory forces produced when the vehicle travels over an uneven road surface. Despite this, a condition known as Smooth Road Shake (“SRS”) can occur when a vehicle travels over a relatively smooth road and minor imperfections in the road surface and/or tire-wheel assemblies create relatively low amplitude disturbances, which are transmitted through the vehicle's strut assemblies to the vehicle body. While typically effective at attenuating higher amplitude vibratory forces produced when a vehicle travels over a relatively rough road, the components (e.g., hydraulic shock absorbers) included within conventional strut assemblies can completely, intermittently, or partially seize (i.e., become locked in place) due to stiction and friction forces when subjected to the relatively low amplitude vibratory forces characteristic of SRS; e.g., in the case of vertical SRS, specifically, vertical displacements equal to or less than approximately 1-4 millimeters (mm). As a result, conventional strut assemblies are often ineffective at isolating a vehicle from the vibratory forces produced during an SRS event. Although an elastomeric strut mount (e.g., a rubber pad within a metal ring) can be disposed between the upper end of each strut assembly and the vehicle body to reduce the transmission of higher amplitude vibratory forces, conventional elastomeric mounts typically have relatively high axial stiffnesses with low damping and consequently provide little additional attenuation of the low amplitude vibratory forces associated with SRS.
There thus exists an ongoing need to provide embodiments of a strut mount suitable for use in conjunction with a vehicular strut assembly that is relatively effective at attenuating relatively minor vertical displacements (e.g., displacements less than approximately 1-4 mm). It is also desirable for embodiments of such a strut mount to have a higher, progressive axial stiffness for larger vertical displacements (e.g., displacements exceeding approximately 1-4 mm) and to have a relatively high radial stiffness to impart optimal ride and handling characteristics to a vehicle when operating under higher dynamic loads. It would further be desirable for embodiments of such a strut mount to be durable and readily amenable to manufacture. Other desirable features and profiles of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent Detailed Description and the appended Claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying Drawings and this Background.